It will be the latest round in a battle of wills over economic reforms before next year’s presidential elections.
Businessesand commuters were warned of disruption and traffic chaos as student and union leaders said Tuesday’s show of force would at least match thev1.5m people they claim backed the last national “day of action†againstthe New Job Contract.
The crisis over the CPE, as it is known in France, has already sapped the prime minister’s popularity and started to raise concerns over the economy.
Last night the interiorminister Nicolas Sarkozy – Mr de Villepin’s main rightwing rival for the presidency – took a fresh swipe at him over his handling of the crisis. Mr Sarkozy used a speech in Douai to criticise Mr de Villepin for not negotiating with unions before launching the CPE, which would let companies fire people aged under 26 relatively easily during a two-year trial